


Birdie

by IanPeriwinkle



Series: Birds of a Feather [1]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Teen Titans (Comics)
Genre: Bruce is a good foster dad, Child Abuse, F/M, Foster Care, Foster Care AU, M/M, Slow Burn, more tags and relationships will be added over time, no superhero au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-01
Updated: 2018-11-01
Packaged: 2019-08-14 03:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16485101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IanPeriwinkle/pseuds/IanPeriwinkle
Summary: Bruce Wayne has always been drawn to helping people. His parents' death solidified that.He wasn't aware of quite how far that desire extended, though.





	1. Chapter 1

Bruce Wayne had, after losing his parents at a young age, subsequently learned that what comes after losing your primary caregivers is a lot more complex than television and movies would have you believe. He was convinced that due to his parents’ wills stating that in both of their absence he was to be left with their trusted employee Alfred Pennyworth, he would simply be able to stay at his family home and continue to exist – albeit in a different and much more hollow way.

Instead, he and Alfred had both been subjected to monthly appointments where they were required to let the social workers know how they were both doing, how they were coping with the changes, and how they planned to operate in the future. Both he and Alfred were adamant that Alfred would not be adopting Bruce officially. It meant that there was more hassle than they wanted in their lives (where they would both prefer to live quietly, with as few interruptions as possible, it forced them to confront the public frequently), but both felt it was more respectful to Martha and Thomas.

This may have led to more trouble in the long-run, with rumours about young Bruce’s relationship with the butler being called into question at every turn, but the two of them dealt with it admirably. There was never once a time in Bruce’s childhood where he felt that he and Alfred would need to throw in the towel and just go through with the adoption.

It may have only been eight years, but in that relatively short space, between Bruce’s required media appearances (to satisfy the public’s usually well-intentioned curiosities about his well-being), the monthly meetings with a dedicated team of social workers (who Bruce honestly believed could be better-utilised elsewhere), and attending his schooling (along with extra lessons, intended to prepare him for inheriting Wayne Industries upon his eighteenth birthday), Bruce found himself living less the life of a child, and more the life of a small and over-burdened, emotionally turbulent adult.

And even then, once he reached eighteen and was officially “grown up”, Bruce still had too much to balance. He no longer had his monthly appointments, for which he thanked every deity he’d been forced to study in preparation for international business – but now he was suddenly balancing the company’s needs with his college degree, as well as fighting off would-be suitors that suddenly came out of the woodwork. He was good-looking, just like his father, and was quickly proclaimed “Gotham’s Most Eligible Bachelor”, which brought with it its own fair share of rumours and speculation. He hadn’t even had the time in his teenage years to determine whether or not he liked men or women, let alone decide on a future _suitable_ partner with which to raise heirs.

Eventually non-sexual rumours about the Wayne heir began surfacing – along with rumours about another rich child he’d encountered before, Oliver Queen, who lived on the West Coast and obviously could not be actively involved with Bruce’s daily life (not that the media seemed to care). Something about masked vigilantism? But with rumours that ridiculous, Bruce just had to laugh and wave them off. “I mean,” he’d laughed at one reporter’s question, “who on earth has the time for that?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce unknowingly starts a chain of events that will haunt him for the rest of his life.

As part of his usual duties for Wayne Industries, Bruce made semi-regular speeches at various charity events. He did them as often as he could at the hospital where his father had worked, feeling that raising money for it would make both of his parents proud.

He also raised money for children where he could. He’d been fortunate (as far as you can call anyone losing their parents fortunate) to have had a solid plan put in place in case of being orphaned. He had someone who he already knew lined up, ready to care for him, and his parents had been wealthy enough that he and Alfred comfortably lived off their savings with money to spare for eight years.

Most children, he came to realise quickly, did not have this kind of luxury. In his meetings at the social workers’ offices, Bruce had encountered several of these less-fortunate cases – many of whom seemed centred around Gotham’s bustling city. He was so used to the glitz and glamour that it was a shock to ten-year-old Bruce. By his teenage years he was almost used to the idea (though in no way happy about it), and by the time he reached eighteen Bruce had decided that one thing he wanted to do with his life was to help kids stuck in the overburdened system.

“So this one is for –”

“The Williams’ Institute for Vagabond Boys,” Bruce replied dully. He was seated in the back of one of his company’s limousines, opposite his chief advisor Malcolm Whaite. Despite trying to prove himself over nearly four years of active involvement with Wayne Industries, both during college and since his recent graduation from business school, he still hadn’t gained the approval of Whaite. The man seemed to believe that Bruce was completely incapable of running the company.

 “And we’re attending this one because…?”

Bruce turned an incredulous look to Whaite. “Because they’re a charity in need of funds and extra hands to handle the ever-increasing number of young people on our streets with nowhere safe to turn,” He decided to be diplomatic in his answer. Bruce was internally having some very uncharitable thoughts towards Malcolm Whaite, none of which he felt were appropriate to bring up before an event where he was required to be polite.

Malcolm seemed to sense Bruce’s thoughts, because instead of responding again as he usually did, he simply tightened his lips and looked out of the tinted windows.

The fundraiser was being held at a travelling circus, set up shortly outside of the city. It was travelling to Gotham specifically for this event – they had never come to Gotham before, and according to Mr. Haly (whom Bruce had conversed with a few short times while arranging it) they would probably never step foot in Gotham again, unless another charity event wanted their presence. “You couldn’t pay me enough,” He’d told Bruce over the phone, “But I’m a bit of a sucker for kids,”

And it was probably a good thing that Haly liked kids otherwise, because Bruce couldn’t exactly see a circus without children attending en masse.

* * *

 

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” Bruce greeted, his characteristic _media-smile_ firmly in place.

“And boys!”

“Yes,” He chuckled, “and to the boys of The Williams’ Institute for Vagabond Boys, I would like to offer you all a warm welcome to tonight’s festivities.” He waited as a polite wave of applause spread throughout the crowd. “Tonight we certainly have a show lined up for you,” He gestured to the Big Top behind him, “My good friend Mr. Haly, from Haly’s Circus, will be putting on a performance with his crew tonight that I believe you will _all_ enjoy,” He winked at some of the older boys from the Institute, who had been pulling bored faces and yawning, “While this is going on, I encourage you to enter the raffles, for which you can buy tickets at any of the entrances, or from any of my colleagues with a purple hat,” here he pointed out one of the representatives, who waved her hat in the air, “help yourselves to the food,” a chef behind the long buffet table waved high above the crowd, “But above all else, please enjoy the show!”

With the end of his introduction speech, there was a larger round of applause, during which Bruce waved to the crowd and switched positions with Mr. Haly. He made his way towards the buffet and helped himself to a glass of wine – a rare treat he allowed himself, as he had found that even when a high profile figure was of age, if they had ever been a child in the spotlight there was bound to be negative talk, and settled in with a small crowd of acquaintances to watch the show.

Mr. Haly was charismatic and charming, and managed to woo the crowd with ease – even some of the boys who had been difficult during Bruce’s speech seemed completely rapt with him. He made quick work of introducing the first act, throwing in a few jokes, and generally keeping the audience happy. Bruce quickly took out the notepad he kept with him at all times and took some notes.

But, for the most part, Bruce wasn’t there to enjoy the show. He was there to network, and to make money. He spent the first few acts (some clowns named Bozo and Bubbles, a very talented contortionist, and a lion tamer) speaking with his Gotham contacts, before moving on to addressing some of the media who had been allowed into the venue.

He stood and talked to one Clark Kent for a whole twenty minutes as the head of the Williams’ Institute addressed the crowd, talking about Clark’s past. He was more than shocked to find out that Clark was only recently being sent to events like this, and even more so that he’d come from a somewhat rough start to life, like many of the children attending.

“They figured,” He’d told Bruce, “that since I had so much experience with being adopted that I would be the best option for the job – honestly though, I don’t even remember a time before my parents didn’t adopt me! I was so young,”

The two young men ended up trading contact details. Ostensibly, Bruce told himself, it was for business purposes. You could never have too many contacts. But really, Bruce had to admit that he felt something of a kinship with Clark – more so than he’d felt with most people his age.

He went up, made another brief speech, imploring the socialites of Gotham to spend a little more for a good cause, and then hung back as Haly announced the main performance for the night. He had a family of aerialists – The Flying Graysons – who were performing tonight. This was honestly the part of the night he was most looking forward to. Well, aside from Malcolm’s sour face as thousands of dollars were poured into what he called a waste, and what Bruce called a valuable resource.

All eyes were drawn up to the stage, there were a few shouts of glee from the kids, and there was a collective “Oooh,” from the crowd, as one Mary Grayson approached her perch, ready to begin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As a word of warning, I don't know how frequently I will be able to update this. I have the plot roughly lined up, but the way that my life is structured right now basically means that I write when and wherever I can.

**Author's Note:**

> The plan for this is to be a long-burn four-part series. I'll add tags and relationships as needed, and always let me know if you think I need to add in particular tags or trigger/content warnings.


End file.
